Niall's Writings

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialists.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me- and there was no one left to speak for me.... Martin Niemoller

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

JUSTIFICATION / EXPLANATION: MARRIAGE EQUALITYWHEREAS, the denial of marriage equality hurts not just individuals, but also family members, neighbors and coworkers, who care about the well-being of same-sex couples and the children in their care; andWHEREAS, domestic partnership and civil union laws bring welcome recognition to such families, there is no substitute for marriage. No legal mechanism for protecting families is as widely accepted or has as clear legal precedent and meaning as does marriage. Denying access to marriage for loving, committed same-sex couples discriminates against them and relegates them to second-class citizenship; therefore, be itRESOLVED, that CSEA hereby expresses it’s commitment to equal rights for all union members, including Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) members; and be it furtherRESOLVED, that CSEA supports loving, committed same-sex couples having equal access to legal marriage, and oppose laws and constitutional amendments that deny that opportunity; and be it finallyRESOLVED, that CSEA calls upon the New York State Legislature and the Governor to enact laws providing equality for all citizens and continues to foster support and diversity at all levels of our organization. That CSEA pledges to work aggressively to achieve this goal.

Monday, January 5, 2009

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE !! I hope you all have a happy and healthy new year, may all your dreams come true, well alright, may a few dreams come true, OK how about ONE dream or small wish come true. I am going to South America and I am taking my Laptop, I do not know how to use a Laptop, but I will try. Now my good friend HellsKitch won't be nearby to talk me down and show me how to do this. He was such a huge part of me finding Niall's Voice. Forever in his debt. Once it got going, it hasn't been quiet too often. That is good. So I travel a lot and so many times I want to share what I am going through, like when Rafael has this NYC born and bred boy from the Bronx, who didn't climb a hill growing up, let alone a mountain, he has me trying to walk up or down mountains, actually I climb much up better than I walk down, but I walk, slide, sit, do what it takes to get back to land, I just keep looking down and think it is either go slow and careful, or just DROP to the bottom. How come I don't ever know these things in advance, or do I ignore the signs and the airline tickets. To be honest, meeting Rafael has been the best adventure of my life. When I met him I thought, oh let me, the world traveler, I had only been to Ireland, well I will take him to Ireland, we went, got on a tour bus in Dublin and were off, now let me say off the bus is not what we did, I pointed out to him all the must sees, BUT stayed on the bus, we went to Trinity College, and I told him "inside there is a Book of Kells, very famous something or other, but we'll look some other time. I did stop to take pictures of the Molly Malone Bronze statue, and sang to him as well." I thought, look at me, I am showing him the world. When my cousin Marybeth and Mike came with us the next year(s) she showed him all the things, she made us GET OFF THE BUS. See, little did I know that Rafael was already a world traveler, who spoke about 5 languages, moved to countries for periods of time. Yet he just amused me and let me think I was just about as cool as could be. P.S. Molly Malone was the only thing I really allowed us to get off the bus for. We passed the Goalmahne Jail (spelling ?) , I did point it out, not off the bus, the Wicklow Mountains, stay on the bus please, then we stopped at the place where they certified you an alcoholic, figured I got off there, plus the driver made us. Then we went too the Cliffs of Moher, where the sites were beautiful, there is no fence on the Cliffs, but I showed Rafael a short cut, well I started slowly, then I was running, for those who know me, I am not a runner, but I was running/sliding right towards the edge of the Cliffs, I turned around and saw Rafael, my new partner and 2 older Irish-Americans staring at me, they thought for sure I was going off the Cliffs, for sure, perhaps I would. All Niall was concerned about was, "when I am flying through the air, to my certain death, thousands of feet into the Atlantic, would I look stupid?" God forbid, I wanted to at least fall graciously, with dignity. Well as you all know I did not fall off the Cliffs of Moher, but Rafael barely lets me get close to the curb of NYC sidewalks. Then he forgets for a week or two and gets me climbing a mountain, or fishing for pirhana in the Amazon Rain Forest, walking in mud, where my footing is non-existent and laughable, and I finally inquire, when is it going to stop raining, why do they give us rain coats every day, OH the RAIN FOREST, hehehehe. See when you put your voice on this little thing called the internet, and you share your voice and writings, you need to be prepared to share it all. See vacations are great, Niall is not too often graceful, but I am grateful, hopefully most of the time. Well I hope to write from Peru, now if you don't hear from me, pray for me. I need it. I just want to share because some people think my travels are so sophisticated, for those who know me, they are fun, exciting, great, leisurely, wild, educational, but Niall from Tolentine, Fordham Road in the Bronx, NEVER sophisticated. Life is good and I am going to write about it.